Live Rock

[odle57]

Will BR turn into LR? I found a really neat piece of rock but it is rather large that would look great in my tank. If it will turn to LR, what do I need to do?

 

[Gomer4378]

Anything that bacteria and algea can get ahold of will become "live".

 

[odle57]

so if i put the rock in an established tank for a couple days it should become "live"?

 

[buddha_red]

More like a few weeks to months but yes it will grow bacteria and become live

 

[Gomer4378]

I'm not sure how long it would have to be in there, but I think about a week will do.
If you put a filter in an established tank for about a week then into a new tank it will seed it.
Someone with more experience will chime in in a min.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Will BR turn into LR? I found a really neat piece of rock but it is rather large that would look great in my tank. If it will turn to LR, what do I need to do?

What type of rock is the rock you found? Define LR; are you talking bacteria only, bacteria and coralline algae, or bacteria, coralline algae and assorted microcritters?

 

[odle57]

It is just a really neat rock that I found behind a house while at work. Don't really know what kind it is. I will bring it home and get some pics up.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

It is just a really neat rock that I found behind a house while at work. Don't really know what kind it is. I will bring it home and get some pics up.

The only issue about using rocks that were not originally from the ocean is that you don't really know what the thing may leach out into the saltwater. Could be a source of something detrimental to a reef tank.

 

[CluelessInNY]

I wouldn't drop that thing into my tank.

 

[Wy Renegade]

It is just a really neat rock that I found behind a house while at work. Don't really know what kind it is. I will bring it home and get some pics up.

Thats what I was wondering. While I do have to confess that I have put rocks taken from around the area into my freshwater cichlids tanks, I would never consider doing so with my saltwater reef tank. As Kurt said, too much risk of something leeching into the water, and I have way too much invested in the tank to even consider it.

To answer your original question however, about base rock turning into LR; I started my 65 gallon reef tank in early December of '07 (Tank #7, by the way) using GARF's man-made rock (completely dead). I "seeded" the tank using some LS (from a fellow hobbiest), and three small pieces (smaller than the palm of my hand) of LR.

By Mid January, my cycle was complete; I had bacteria:

This is what it looked like in April of '09 (four months):

This is what it looks like now (14 Months):

. . . so the answer to your original question is yes, base rock will become live (over a period of time). That said, however, I must again caution against using non ocean based rock. HTH

 

[odle57]

Well I was wondering if i could process the rock in the same fashion as the "poor mans LR." I planned on letting it sit in a container with mild acid to kill anything that may be crawling around in the crevices. And this thing is huge! I didnt realize how heavy it was. I guesstimated it to be 50-60 lsb. But when I got home and got it weighed.....135 lbs! Now i worry that it will break my tank.

 

[Gomer4378]

take a sledge hammer to it and make a couple of really nice pieces.